Years Later (Rewritten)
by Solar Winded Flare
Summary: Four years have passed since Amanda left the town of Dark Falls, but she hasn't forgotten what happened there. When she gets a call from Ray, she's given an ultimatum: be his, or her family will be harmed. Meanwhile, Amy Kramer finds herself kidnapped, and Kris Powell finds herself falling for her old enemy. Pairings: Amy/Slappy, Ray/Amanda, Kris/Mr. Wood.
1. Chapter 1

**Hi guys! It's been WEEKS since I've last logged onto fanfiction and I've got to say, I miss having time to write. SOOO, dear readers, I've decided to rewrite my first publication on fanfiction, which is 'Years Later'. When I go back through it and proofread, I cringe at my old style of writing. This is the rewritten, better version. Hope you enjoy!~ :) And if you've read my Powerpuff Girl fanfiction, then please be patient, and thank you for your continued patience! It's my last year of high school and I'm flooded with homework, classwork, and I'm preparing my portfolio for college. So you can only imagine how swamped with work I am :C But I haven't abandoned it, and I promise I'll update as soon as I get some time! Promise, promise, promise!**

**I don't own Goosebumps or any characters that are part of the Goosebumps series. It all belongs to Mr. R.L. Stine!**

* * *

**Chapter 1**

Amanda opened the door to her house and stepped in, grateful for the warmth inside. The cold air outside had chilled her through her winter coat and her boots.

"I'm home!" she called, dropping her backpack near the front door.

There was no reply, and Amanda shrugged to herself. She figured she'd be alone; around this time, her parents were still at work and her brother, Josh, was still at soccer practice.

Ever since she and her family had moved here, Josh fell in love with soccer. It was the only thing he chattered about at dinner; Amanda had never seen someone with more athletic motivation than her brother.

The still-shivering brunette made her way into the kitchen and grabbed an apple from the counter. Taking a bite out of its plump shape, she squinted at the calendar her mother had pinned next to the fridge.

When she saw that there weren't any upcoming plans, she heaved a sigh and sat at the kitchen table. The day's events began to run through her already-jumbled thoughts.

Amanda was never worried about her classes; she was rather sharp in school, and ever since the experience in Dark Falls, things seemed to change for the better in the Benson household.

Dark Falls... The mention of that place made her shudder.

Amanda refused to deal with the weird memories surrounding that place. The old, creaky house, the odd children, the creepy realtor... It all seemed too surreal to be real. Had she just dreamt up all of the events that took place there? Was Dark Falls even a real place?

It didn't matter. Amanda was back in normal society and everything was just fine. She didn't have to worry about that place ever again.

The phone rang, pulling the girl from her thoughts. She set the half-eaten apple down and answered the phone.

"Hello?"

"Hey," a voice breathed. Amanda immediately recognized the voice as her brother's.

"Is Dad home?" he asked, still panting.

"Not yet; why?"

He sighed. "I was going to ask him if he could pick me up, but I guess I can take the bus. I'll see you soon."

"Okay, no problem."

Just as Amanda had hung up and picked up her apple again to take another bite, the phone rang again.

"Now what?" she grumbled under her breath. Even so, she picked up the phone again.

"Hey!" a high-pitched voice chirped. "What's up, girly?"

Amanda smiled. "Hi, Amy."

Amy Kramer, her best friend, was one of the most popular girls in their school. Even though Amy was extremely nice, Amanda was always sort of jealous of her. Amy had a natural tan that every girl would kill for, and a perfect figure. Her long black hair was always styled perfectly and fell to the middle of her back. Amanda could never seem to tan, she was skinny with barely any curves besides her chest, and she had boring brown hair that fell around her shoulders. Clearly, Amy was much prettier than she was.

"I'm at the park with Kendra and Natalie," Amy said. "Wanna hang out with us?"

"Can't," Amanda replied, twirling the telephone cord around her finger. "I've got homework and Josh is coming home soon; I'm pretty sure he forgot his key. Maybe tomorrow?"

"Sure. Later!"

"Bye."

With a sigh, she hung up.

Amanda eventually got around to picking up her discarded backpack and bringing it into the living room.

With a sigh, she pulled out her mess of notebooks and grabbed a nearby pen.

* * *

Dinner was uneventful, which wasn't surprising. Mr. and Mrs. Benson always talked about their jobs and Josh prattled on about the soccer team.

Amanda never really had much to say; she was always exhausted from school. When she finished helping her mother clear the table, Amanda practically dragged her weary body upstairs. She all but flung herself onto her bed, mentally begging for sleep to overtake her as soon as possible.

Luck was on her side; it didn't take long for her to fall asleep.

Amanda was awoken a few hours later by a vibrating noise. Upon opening her eyes, she noticed a light flooding the room. Her cell phone was buzzing on the night stand. Right as it was about to vibrate right off the wooden surface, she caught it and pressed a button.

"Hello?"

"_Amanda._"

The raspiness of the voice made her blood run cold.

_Oh, no... Not him... It's not possible..._

"W-w-who is this?" She knew damn well who it was; she just didn't want to acknowledge the fact that Ray had been able to contact her after four years.

"_You don't remember?_"

"N-no."

"_You're stuttering, Amanda._" She could practically hear the smirk in his voice.

"S-shut up, Ray," she grumbled softly.

He chuckled. "_So you _do_ remember me._"

How could Amanda forget? The memory of Dark Falls was still fresh in her memory even though four years had passed. After they moved back to normal civilization, Amanda had to take medication to help her sleep. The poor girl kept having nightmares about the twisted town.

Amanda knew it was pathetic to admit, but a certain blonde-haired zombie-vampire continued to haunt her dreams even after she stopped needing the sleep medication. Ray Thurston stuck out in her mind much more than anything in that town.

"Unfortunately," she replied dryly. "I do."

There was a short silence before she heard Ray chuckle. Amanda closed her eyes tightly and pressed her thumb and forefinger to the bridge of her nose; she was starting to become annoyed. It was, after all, close to three in the morning, and she wanted nothing more than to fall back into the oblivion of sleep for at least three more hours. Maybe even a few more if her mother was all right with bringing her into school a little late.

"_Well, there's no way I can forget about you._"

"Easy. Think of something else."

"_You're too pretty to forget._"

"Then pretend I'm ugly."

He sighed. Amanda glanced at her alarm clock yet again to see that it was currently 3:12. She bit the inside of her cheek in frustration.

_Come on, Ray,_ she thought. _Hang up already and let me go back to sleep._

"Is there a reason why you called?" she asked, ready to push the conversation (if you could call it that) to a close.

Ray cleared his throat, but it didn't do much; his voice still sounded quite raspy. One would think he needed a drink of water.

"_Actually, yes. Ever since you left, things have been different. _I've_ been different. I can't stop thinking about you... And I know you probably don't feel the same, and you've probably never given me much thought, but... I'm not getting any younger, and I just don't give a damn anymore._"

Amanda pursed her lips and readjusted herself so that she was half-upright, half-laying down. She held her phone close to her ear, her eyebrows knitted together in confusion.

"I don't understand."

"_I want you to come back, Amanda,_" he clarified. "_Come back to me, to Dark Falls. Come back and stay with me._"

She bit the inside of her cheek again, accidentally biting the soft flesh too hard. She winced; Ray continued.

"_It won't hurt, you know. All you would have to do is fall asleep, and I'll do the rest. We... We could be together._"

Amanda couldn't help it. She snorted, then burst into a fit of laughter.

She felt bad for laughing at the dead boy on the other end of the line. He'd just admitted what seemed to be private, meaningful thoughts that had been sitting in his mind for over four years and here, she was laughing at him.

But it was so damned crazy. Insane. It was _lunacy!_

"Ray, what makes you think I'd _ever_ go back to Dark Falls?" she asked, a few chuckles squeezing themselves in between words. "You, as well as everyone there, tried to kill my family. _Kill_, Ray. I'm no expert, but that's not really a neighborly thing to do. I'm not going back and I don't want to become like you."

There was silence on the other end of the line. Amanda cleared her throat a few times to try to calm herself down even more. She owed Ray that much, if anything.

Finally, she heard him sigh. "_I was afraid you'd say no._"

Amanda settled back under the covers of her bed, facing the ceiling, one arm resting over her eyes.

Humor still laced her voice. "Yeah?"

"_Yeah. I'm going to give you two options. Either you come with me willingly, or I'll come get you myself. If you try to fight me, the lives of your parents and your brother will be at stake._"

"You're stuck in Dark Falls, Ray. There's no way you can come all the way out here. You and everyone else in that damned town are stuck there for eternity."

Ray chuckled bitterly. "_Oh, really? Are you challenging me to come find you?_"

"Yup." Amanda smirked. "I'll be waiting."

"_You're absolutely sure?_"

Sleep was beginning to cloud her mind. The conversation was beginning to close; she could feel it. Just a few more minutes, no, seconds, and she would be back to sleep.

Sweet, merciful sleep.

With a yawn, she mumbled, "Yes, I'm absolutely sure."

"_All right, Amanda, if that's what you want. I'm warning you, though, you shouldn't have underestimated me._"

She yawned again. "I'm not scared."

"_Really?_"

"Really."

"_Well, if you're really not scared, then you won't mind me saying you looked beautiful yesterday. You should wear dresses more often._"

Amanda's eyes snapped open, the sleepy haze leaving her mind. Suddenly, the room felt colder.

"What?"

"_You heard me._"

"How the... How did you know I was wearing a dress yesterday?"

He laughed. "_Maybe I'm a lot closer to you than you think. I'll see you soon, Amanda. Good night._"

"Ray!"

She was met with the dial tone.

Amanda turned her cell phone off and let it slip from her fingers. It landed on the carpet with a soft 'thud'.

Her heart raced at the possibility of Ray being somewhere near her. Was he just messing with her?

Had it been mere coincidence that he'd guessed she'd worn a dress yesterday? Any girl could wear a dress on any day; maybe she was reading too much into this.

Finally, Amanda decided Ray was just trying to freak her out. She snuggled closer to her bed and closed her eyes, all thoughts of the undead boy leaving her head.

* * *

**What do you think? Better than the original, or worse? Please let me know! :D**


	2. Chapter 2

**To ROC95: Yay! Thanks for reviewing :)**

**Sorry if there are any mistakes. Sort of just woke up.**

**I don't own Goosebumps.**

* * *

**Chapter 2**

Morning came quicker than Amanda would have liked it to. She was just beginning to wake up when there was a knock at her door.

"Hey Amanda, are you awake yet?"

_Josh_, she realized. She sat up, rubbing her eyes in an attempt to wake herself up more.

"Yeah," she called.

"Breakfast is ready. Mom made eggs, bacon, and pancakes."

"She's not at work?"

"Took the day off. She said something about needing to do some shopping."

"Okay. Be down in a minute."

Amanda heard Josh's footsteps leave her door and echo down the hallway. With a sigh, she got up and began to get herself ready for the day.

It was only when Amanda was going through her closet to pick out a sweater that she suddenly looked over at her pile of dirty laundry. The blue long-sleeved dress that she'd worn a few days ago sat idly above a few shirts.

A violent chill ripped through her body and Amanda hugged herself. Memories of last night's conversation came flooding into her mind.

_Stop_, she told herself as she continued to go through her closet. _Ray isn't here, and he was probably just saying that stuff just to mess with you. He's in Dark Falls, trapped, and you're here. You're safe._

Somehow, though, the mini-pep talk didn't work. Amanda felt the strangest sensation that she was being watched, and she quickly pulled on an outfit so that prying eyes wouldn't get the chance to see her naked body.

Amanda forced herself to think of other things as she began to make her way downstairs.

_There's a test on Tuesday. Amy wants me to go ice skating with her and the girls on Wednesday afternoon. Josh and I are going to the mall to hang out this Saturday._

She didn't even realize she had made it to the kitchen until she almost bumped into Josh. He grinned up at her, his mouth full of chewed food.

Amanda cracked a smile at his goofy grin. She ruffled his hair, earning a muffled protest.

"Good morning, short stuff."

Josh swallowed the food in his mouth and stuck his tongue out at her.

"Good morning, old lady."

Amanda rolled her eyes. "Old lady? Really?"

"I don't know. It's five in the morning. I don't start coming up with good comebacks until at least seven."

Mrs. Benson turned the stove off and placed a plate of eggs and bacon on the kitchen table.

"Hi, sweetie," she greeted. Amanda sat down and took a bite of bacon.

"Hi, Mom."

"Are you happy it's Friday?"

"You have no idea."

Mrs. Benson chuckled. "Well, I hope you have a good day at school. I have to go run some errands, so I'll be gone all day. Do you have your key with you?"

"Yeah. I should be fine."

"All right. I'll see you kids later."

With that, Mrs. Benson gave both kids a quick peck on the forehead and left.

"We should probably put our shoes on and go outside soon," Josh said, tapping his fingers against the table top. "It's six-twenty."

Amanda finished her breakfast before placing the plate in the sink. She went into the living room and pulled on her boots, glancing up at the clock to gauge the time, and then grabbed her bag.

Josh pulled on his sneakers and then hoisted his backpack onto his shoulders.

"Ready for another fun-filled day at school?" he asked, sarcasm lacing his voice. Amanda rolled her eyes.

"Oh, yeah. I'm bursting with excitement."

Josh snickered and the two siblings stepped out into the snow, the morning chill making both of them shiver.

* * *

Amy Kramer stared at herself in the mirror, turning her face this way and that. After staring at her lips, she unscrewed her tube of lip gloss and applied another coat.

"Amy, you're going to be late!"

"Coming, Mom!" she called, checking her eyeliner one last time. Finally, Amy stood up and grabbed her rhinestone-embellished denim jacket.

She was dressed to the nines today, what with the red dress that hugged her figure and flared out about her waist, the black leggings, the leather boots that adorned her feet, and her beloved denim jacket. She couldn't wait to show off her new outfit to her friends.

Amy raced downstairs and grabbed her bag. She exited the house and started to walk down to where Amanda's house was; they lived in the same neighborhood, only a few blocks away from each other.

When she noticed the Benson siblings weren't waiting for her in their driveway, she figured she'd continue her journey down to the bus stop.

But just as she was rounding the corner, the hairs on the back of her neck stood up.

_Is someone watching me?_ she wondered, looking around. Nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary, save for the slight snowfall that began as soon as Amy stepped out of her house.

Just as she was about to shrug off the paranoia and keep walking, a wet cloth was shoved over her mouth and an arm wound itself around her waist. Amy struggled to get her nose away from the cloth and tried to shove the person's arm from her waist, but she was beginning to feel faint.

"Sorry about this, my dear _slave_, but I think it's about time I reclaim you," a deep voice whispered in her ear. Amy's head began to hurt; why did that voice sound so... familiar?

The world before her turned white as the snowfall grew heavier and thicker, then faded into black as she began to lose consciousness.


	3. Chapter 3

**Anyone else tired?**

**I don't own Goosebumps.**

* * *

**Chapter 3**

Amanda knew the bus was cold as soon as she sat down in one of the seats. The cold leather underneath the seat of her pants made her shiver even more than the howling wind outside.

Josh took a seat in the back with his friends, immediately launching into a conversation about the latest video game releases. Amanda tuned him out and instead wrapped her jacket tighter around herself. She looked up, watching other kids pass by her to find seats, and noticed that Amy hadn't boarded the bus.

Amanda waited, wondering if maybe Amy was being driven to school this morning, only to find that the bus driver closed the doors and began the journey to Pleasantview High. She sighed, finally warming up when the bus driver turned up the heat, and turned to look out at the white scenery.

There was nothing unusual about the houses, the trees, nor the occasional stores that they passed. Adults were shoveling snow off the sidewalks, cleaning snow off their cars, and driving away from their warm homes to begin their work days while young children were outside frolicking in the winter wonderland.

It might have been nice to look at if there wasn't an uneasy feeling in the pit of Amanda's stomach.

_I shouldn't have eaten so much_, she thought, thinking the feeling was indigestion.

She rummaged through her bag and plucked her cell phone from its protective pocket. She dialed a few numbers, then typed a quick message to Amy.

Amanda waited, running her fingertips over her phone's buttons, then bit her lip.

_That's weird_, she thought. _Usually Amy replies immediately. I hope she's okay; she sounded perfectly fine yesterday on the phone._

Suddenly, something inside of her whispered to look up. Amanda obliged, turning her attention to the window.

The bad feeling in her gut intensified.

At first, nothing seemed wrong. They were passing by a complex, full of snow-covered houses and empty driveways, when Amanda noticed _him_.

Tall, as always, and paler than the snow itself. His eyes were hidden by the hat he wore but Amanda knew they were a beautiful baby blue. His face was burned into her memory.

A gray trench coat gave the impression that he had a stocky build, a pair of dark jeans and shoes the only way to see that he was indeed thin and lanky.

Amanda's mouth fell open when Ray looked up suddenly, his expression akin to that of just waking up, but as soon as his eyes met hers, he grinned.

She watched in horror as he lifted a hand and stretched his fingers in a lazy 'hello', the way most guys said hello to their friends if they didn't feel like actually saying the word.

As they passed the complex, Amanda suddenly looked back to see that he was gone.

No one seemed to notice Ray or his lazy wave. Amanda's heart was beating furiously against her rib cage.

_He's here_, she realized. _I'm in deep shit._


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey guys! Thanks for your reviews ROC95 and Anastasia Dark! Don't worry, I will definitely keep this story alive :D**

**Hope you enjoy!**

**I don't own Goosebumps.**

* * *

**Chapter 4**

Amy opened her eyes slowly and hesitantly, not sure of where she was or why she had fallen asleep.

_Oh, no_, she thought. _School! If I'm late one more time, Mrs. Blaine will give me detention!_

She scrambled to get up, desperate to find her school bag and sprint to school.

Only when Amy tripped over her own legs and landed on a cool hardwood floor did she realize that she was somewhere other than her house.

Amy blinked a few times to let her eyes adjust. When she was able to look around and get a better view of her surroundings, she was surprised to find herself in a hotel bedroom. It wasn't anything to brag about, but it was fairly decent. The bed was covered with white linen sheets and a lovely teal comforter. Two white throw pillows were resting near the foot of the bed, and near the foot of the bed sat a dresser. Amy wandered towards the wooden piece of furniture and opened a drawer.

Inside were a few neatly-folded shirts, all of them long-sleeved. She opened another drawer to find it full of long skirts, and another with jeans.

Amy was so busy rummaging through the drawers that she didn't notice the door slowly creak open. In stepped her captor, his eyebrow raised at her behavior.

Amy had just closed the top drawer when she heard him clear his throat. She spun on her heel and met his eyes.

She had to blink a few times to make sure the person standing before her wasn't a hallucination. He looked extremely familiar, what with the slicked-back auburn hair, the sinister green eyes, and the predatory grin.

"Slappy?" she whispered, surprised that his name rolled off her tongue so easily. It had been years since she'd thought about the evil ventriloquist dummy and all the events that transpired because of him. The Kramer family moved to Pleasantview a year after defeating Slappy and didn't give the dummy much thought afterwards. Most of her other dolls, like Dennis and her stuffed animals, had either been given away or put into storage; she was too big to play with toys.

The handsome young man standing before her nodded.

"Amy."

His voice had been squeaky and obnoxious when he was a dummy, but now it was deep and full of authority. Amy leaned back against the top of the dresser and pressed her palm into its edge, trying to steady herself.

"What... How... How are you human?"

"I have my ways," he replied. "And I see that you found the clothes I picked up for you."

Amy glanced at the dresser. "These are... For me? But why?"

Slappy folded his hands behind his back and strolled over to the window. Snow was falling outside; the thick white flakes greatly contrasted with the inky black night sky. Amy felt her heart begin to beat faster.

_What's going on?_

Slappy remained in front of the window. He seemed to be taking quite an interest in the heavy snowfall outside.

"Amy, you remember when I enslaved you."

She couldn't help herself. She snorted.

"You didn't enslave me. You tried to tell me what to do and I defeated you."

An uncomfortable pause passed before Slappy spoke again.

"Yeah, well, be that as it may, you're not going anywhere this time. You're officially my slave from now on."

Amy cracked an amused smirk. "Slappy, what is this all about? I'm sixteen. I'm not a kid anymore. I'm not going to be your slave or whatever you're thinking. Don't you have other human slaves?"

"Yeah," he admitted, turning his head to the side slightly. Amy saw the frown on his handsome face.

"But most of them just didn't fit my criteria. You, though... You're special."

Amy placed her hands on her hips. She raised an eyebrow. "Special how?"

Slappy turned around and approached her. She noticed that he towered over her by at least an inch, if not two inches.

He grabbed her chin and tilted it up so that her gaze met his. Amy stared into his liquid green eyes defiantly.

"You're the most beautiful slave I have," he said softly. She shivered when he ran his thumb over her cheek. "And you're incredibly stubborn. We're going to have to change that, won't we?"

"Don't touch me!" Amy shoved him away. Slappy took a step back, but barely even stumbled from the impact.

He grinned at her. "You haven't changed a bit."

"Whatever," she grumbled. "Don't touch me again."

Suddenly, Slappy's expression grew serious.

"Stay here. I have a few more things to take care of before I can really talk to you."

"Where am I supposed to go, genius?" Amy spat. Secretly she was already keeping count of how many windows were in the room and how she could use that to her advantage.

Slappy gave her a look. "Stay here, Amy."

She rolled her eyes and sat on the bed. Slappy gave her one last look before leaving the room, locking the door behind him.

_Okay_, Amy thought. _Now to find a way out of here._


	5. Chapter 5

**This chapter was extremely fun to write. ;)**

**I don't own Goosebumps.**

* * *

**Chapter 5**

Usually Amanda was pleased when school passed by quickly, but today, she was fearful of what was to come after she went home. Would Ray be there? Would he really kidnap her?

_This is ridiculous_, she thought, gathering her books to head off to chemistry class._ He won't be at my house. Unless I leave the house, I should be fine. There's no way he can get in the house without someone letting him in. I'll be okay._

Even so, her thoughts didn't give her the slightest bit of comfort.

"Where's Amy?" Kendra, one of Amy's friends, asked once Amanda had entered the classroom. Amanda shrugged.

"I think she stayed home today. She wasn't at the bus stop this morning."

"Oh." Kendra returned to her seat just in time for the teacher to begin his lesson.

"Okay, everyone, if you could please take out the homework from last night so we could go over it, then we could move on to the fun stuff."

Amanda absentmindedly withdrew her homework from her binder. She placed it on her desk and was about to look up at the chalkboard when something caught her eye. She looked over at the window only to see a familiar blonde boy. He grinned at her.

Amanda's eyes widened and she looked around to see if anyone else had noticed him.

Everyone was too busy paying attention to what the teacher was going on about to notice the window, and those uninterested enough to look outside looked right through Ray as if he wasn't even there.

_Okay, that's it. I'm officially going nuts._

Ray winked at Amanda before looking around her classroom. Just when Amanda thought he was going to leave her alone, he blew a kiss at her, making it look as dramatic as he could.

Amanda rolled her eyes at him and mouthed, "Go away."

He drew a heart in the condensation on the window. In the heart was the word 'No'.

The brunette girl quickly looked around, shocked that no one else noticed what her stalker was doing, and then back at Ray. His grin grew wider.

Amanda rolled her eyes again.

_I shouldn't be paying attention to him_, she thought, chastising herself. _Maybe if I ignore him, he'll go away._

So she turned her attention away from the window and focused on what the teacher was saying. She was beginning to lose herself in the lesson when she heard a loud tapping on the window.

Amanda glanced at it to see Ray still grinning. She flipped him her middle finger and once again mouthed, "Go away."

A frown replaced the grin and his eyes narrowed. Amanda watched as he finally disappeared.

Relief washed over her heart as she began to tune into the lesson. With all the homework questions out of the way, the lesson had finally begun, and Amanda was looking forward to starting the class as quickly as possible so that it could end just as quickly. While she wasn't too crazy about science, she was told an extra science course would look good on her college resume.

"All right, everyone, open up to your notes so that we can start this experiment as soon as possible."

The entire class obliged, the sound of shuffling papers and binder snaps echoing throughout the room. Amanda had opened to a clean page of loose leaf, pen at the ready when she felt a cool hand brush her elbow.

She turned to her side to see Ray, leaning into the palm of his hand. His blue eyes swept over her body briefly before meeting her gaze.

"Go away!" she hissed. A few of her classmates turned around. Amanda gave an awkward chuckle.

Ray smirked. "Having fun? They can't see me, you know."

"Yeah, that's obvious," she muttered, jotting down the words on the chalkboard. Ray placed his hand on her hip and began to run his hand up and down her side. Amanda continued writing down the notes, ignoring Ray's touch as best as she could manage. He moved his hand down to her thigh, then towards the inside of her thigh. Amanda bit her lip.

Ray moved closer to her and wrapped an arm around her waist. He leaned in close to her neck and nuzzled the soft skin. That was when Amanda had had enough and slammed her hand down on the desk.

Everyone, including the teacher, turned towards her. Amanda opened her mouth, then closed it, unsure of how to explain herself.

"Amanda, are you okay?" Mr. Morris asked. Amanda nodded.

"Uh, yeah. I just... Thought there was a bug on my paper. Sorry."

A few kids snickered and whispered to each other. Mr. Morris continued teaching, sending Amanda a concerned glance every now and then.

"Leave me alone, Ray," Amanda whispered, covering her face with her hands. "You're making a fool out of me."

"Correction: _you're_ making a fool out of yourself. I'm just here to see you."

"Why? What's your deal? Why me?"

He blinked. "I thought I told you last night. I like you, Amanda. More than friends."

She rolled her eyes. "So you come to my school and distract me from my work?"

"Were you actually planning on paying attention?"

_He's got a point_, a part of her whispered. Amanda sighed.

"I'm not going back with you to Dark Falls," she whispered. "I can't. I've got a life here and I don't plan on leaving it behind."

"We'll see about that."

Amanda turned to see a mischievous glint in Ray's eyes. He leaned in close and kissed her on the cheek, letting his hand trail over her jaw.

"See you later, Amanda. Have fun while you still can, because by the end of the day, things will be different."

With that, he was gone. A violent chill shook her body and she hugged herself.

_Whatever he's planning_, she thought. _It can't be good._


	6. Chapter 6

**Let me know what you guys think about this chapter. I'm kind of on the fence with it; I like and dislike it, if that makes sense. I hope you all enjoy it, though! :)**

**Sorry if there are any mistakes. For some reason, the T key on my keyboard isn't working properly. So if there are any mistakes, please let me know. Thank you in advance!**

**I don't own Goosebumps.**

* * *

**Chapter 6**

Amy grunted, trying to lift one of the windows open, but it wasn't budging. Judging by how old it looked, the window was either rusted shut or it was broken. Perhaps it was _nailed_ shut?

With a defeated sigh, she let herself fall against the bed.

"So much for _that_ idea," she muttered. Amy readjusted herself so that she was curled into a ball.

_There's no way for me to escape; I'm going to have to make a run for it or something when Slappy opens the door or something. I need to get back home._

Amy closed her eyes for what seemed like a few minutes only to feel someone shaking her.

"Wake up. Come on, Amy, get up already. We're wasting time."

"What?" She was dragged back to consciousness and, upon opening her eyes, was met with a very annoyed Slappy.

"Ah, good.; you're awake. Come on, we're going out for dinner."

Amy snorted. "I'm not going out to dinner with you."

"I don't believe I asked you. Come here, _slave_."

"You can't tell me what to do," she countered. "You're not my father."

"No, but pretty soon, I _will_ be your husband."

It felt like cold water had been thrown in her face.

_Husband?_

"What the hell are you talking about?"

Slappy sat next to her, his gaze never leaving hers.

"I haven't told you the reason why I kidnapped you," he said, taking her hand in his. She noticed how big his hands felt around hers. She also noticed that it felt kind of nice when he ran his thumbs over her knuckles in a soothing manner.

Amy could have sworn she saw his face turn a light pink.

"I kidnapped you because I want you to marry me."

Had she been drinking something, she would have spat it right out.

Amy stared at him in disbelief.

"You want me to marry you."

Slappy nodded.

She shook her head. "No."

He narrowed his eyes at her. "I didn't ask you. I _told_ you that I want you to marry me."

"Yeah, I heard what you said but that doesn't mean I'm going to comply."

That's when Slappy grabbed her wrist and held it in a painful grip. Amy cried out, trying to get her wrist out of his grasp, but he wouldn't budge.

"You will marry me whether you like it or not."

"B-but I already have a boyfriend!" she protested. It wasn't a complete lie; recently, she'd been seeing a boy named Dan from her math class.

The former-dummy frowned. "Not anymore, you don't."

With that, Slappy used his free hand to cup her chin and pressed his lips gently against hers.

Amy tried to wrench her face away from him, but he kept a firm grip on her chin, moving his lips against hers with vigor. Finally, she began to kiss him back. Her heart was thumping so hard it felt like it was going to burst.

Slappy stopped cupping her chin and instead moved it to gently hold her jaw. When Amy opened her eyes, she realized he was staring at her. He was wearing a curious expression.

"You know, for someone so hell-bent on giving me a hard time, you're pretty good at kissing."

She blushed. "S-shut up."

"Go change into something formal," Slappy said, standing up. "We're leaving to go to dinner in ten minutes. Be ready by then or I will drag you there, dressed or not. Do you understand?"

Amy didn't get a chance to respond, for he had already walked out the door and locked it.

She pressed her fingertips against her lips, confused with herself.

_Why did I kiss him back?_ she wondered._ And... And why don't I feel guilty for kissing him? I already have a boyfriend; what's going on with me?_

Reluctantly, Amy got up and began to look for something to wear for her dinner with Slappy.


	7. Chapter 7

**What a wonderful day it is for an update~**

**Thanks to ROC95 for continuing to leave awesome reviews and for being supportive. Thank you so much! :)**

**I don't own Goosebumps.**

* * *

**Chapter 7**

The bus ride home was very uncomfortable for Amanda. She could still feel Ray's touch through her jeans even though he wasn't there.

Then again, she wasn't really sure of his whereabouts anymore. He showed up at her school, in her classroom; why not show up on the bus, too?

Amanda slumped down in her seat. She wished she could have stayed home like Amy had. It would have saved her the embarrassment Ray caused her.

When the bus finally came to a stop at her complex, Amanda hopped off and began the slow journey up to her house.

The snow was beginning to come down hard. She hugged her jacket tighter around herself for warmth. Just when Amanda was about to reach her driveway, she heard snow crunching behind her.

Thinking it was one of her neighbors, she turned slightly.

There was no one behind her.

Amanda shrugged off the feeling of being watched, trying not to think of a certain blonde boy stalking her, and continued the trek up her driveway.

Once she was in her house, she set her school bag down and began to head into the kitchen.

She was just about to open the fridge and help herself to some leftover chocolate cake when she noticed a note taped next to a few magnets.

* * *

_'Amanda,_

_Went to grandma's for a little while. There's money on the table for pizza if you and Josh get hungry._

_Love, Mom'_

* * *

She bit her lip.

_I'm alone. Josh had another soccer meeting in the gym and Dad went to work. I'm alone here._

Suddenly, she didn't feel so hungry.

Amanda shrugged off her jacket and reluctantly made her way upstairs. When she went to open her door, she hesitated.

_What if he's in there? No, s__top. Just stop; you're going to walk in there and everything will be where you left it. Ray won't be there and you'll be fine. Stop being so paranoid!_

Slowly, she turned the doorknob and peeked inside.

Sure enough, everything was just as she had left it this morning. The bed was messy, as Amanda hadn't had time to make it, and a few shirts were strewn across the floor.

Feeling a little braver, Amanda opened the door fully and stepped inside.

She walked over to her bed and sat down on the messy covers. She kicked off her boots and managed to shrug off her jacket before curling up into a ball and falling asleep.

Sometime later, Amanda awoke to the sound of her door creaking open. Her heartbeat picked up, pounding in her ears, and she locked her gaze on her door.

Someone peeked in, intensifying Amanda's fear.

Amanda gasped and grabbed a pillow, ready to chuck it at Ray if he was the one entering her room. She practically died of relief when she saw it was just Josh.

His hand patted the wall until he found the light switch and flicked it on. The room lit up; Amanda noticed the grin on Josh's face.

"Guess who just ordered some pizza, two liters of Coke, and set up a movie?"

Amanda smiled. "You did?"

"Hell yeah! Come on, it'll be fun! I picked out one of the Scream movies."

Though she wasn't too crazy about his movie choice, she followed her younger brother downstairs and settled down to spend some time with him.

* * *

"Wow," Josh said, a yawn interrupting him. "That wasn't too scary."

Amanda shrugged, taking a sip of her Coke. "A few parts freaked me out."

He laughed. "That's just 'cause you're _you_, Amanda."

She rolled her eyes, but stuck out her tongue playfully.

"Hey, what time is it?" Josh asked, stretching. Amanda leaned back into the couch a little bit to squint at the wall clock in the kitchen.

"It's almost ten."

Suddenly, Josh's cell phone began to ring. He picked it up and flipped it open.

"Hello? Hi, Dad. Yeah, we're fine. Yeah. Oh, okay. Sure. Okay, talk to you tomorrow. Bye."

Amanda looked at her brother expectantly. Josh let out a long sigh.

"They're at grandma's house. She's sick and Mom wants them to stay and make sure she'll be all right."

It felt like her heart had sank into her stomach.

"Oh."

"They'll be back tomorrow if she feels better. Anyway, I'm going to bed. Good night."

She managed a weak smile. "Good night."

With that, Josh disappeared upstairs. Amanda decided to clean the living room a little bit before retiring to her room. She put the DVD back in its case, placed the empty popcorn bowl in the sink, and put the empty Coke bottles in the recycling bin.

Amanda looked around the kitchen. She'd turned the lights off in the living room, so that was done, everything was clean, and the only thing left was to turn the lights down in the kitchen.

_Ray might be up there,_ something inside her whispered, but she knew she was being irrational._ I can't stay down here forever. I might as well go face the music._

She turned the lights off in the kitchen and slowly went upstairs to her room. When she opened the door, she was surprised to find that her room was empty. Relieved, she changed into her pajamas and crawled into bed.

It was only a few hours later that Amanda could feel a sensation of movement. Her body felt weightless; cold air surrounded her and infiltrated the warm fortress that was her pajamas.

She opened her eyes only to see a blurry face.

"Shh, go back to sleep," a hushed voice whispered. Amanda ignored the voice and continued to blink, trying to get her eyes to adjust to the darkness around her.

She nearly screamed when she saw who was carrying her.

Ray winked at her. "I told you not to underestimate me."

* * *

**What do you guys think? Good? Not good? Please review :)**


	8. Chapter 8

**Thank you to SideshowJazz1, ROC95, and DontHateJustLove for your reviews! I agree; I like this version of Years Later better. The old one was kind of just a bunch of raw ideas. Thank you so much for taking the time to review; hope everyone enjoys this chapter! I'm also going to go a bit more into depth when it comes to Kris and Mr. Wood's relationship. I gave him the fake name Mark Wood. Don't want anyone to be confused.**

**Enjoy!~**

**I don't own Goosebumps.**

* * *

**Chapter 8**

"Loser! Go back to your corner table!"

Kris squeaked as an apple was thrown her way. She hurried out of the cafeteria, ignoring the fact that she was still carrying the plastic bag that contained her sandwich and milk carton, and headed up to her favorite classroom. Mrs. Phillips wouldn't mind her eating lunch there; it wasn't often Kris could really eat lunch in the cafeteria, anyway.

Her long blonde hair swished this way and that as she walked. She loved the feeling of her long hair tickling her shoulders and her back; it made her feel powerful. Confident.

Well, she felt confident when her twin _wasn't_ around, for that matter. Lindy was the perfect, prettier twin while Kris was the outcast, and Lindy always made sure that Kris knew that.

While Lindy got invited to all sorts of cool parties, Kris got to spend her time at home. Though, she didn't really mind; while Lindy was good at getting attention from the school's male population, Kris was good with a paintbrush. She loved painting and drawing; art was her only outlet. While her parents spent all their time at work and Lindy was out parading around the mall with her friends, Kris put all of her energy into her paintbrush.

It paid off, too. Her art teacher was already was planning on entering her into a local art show. Her painting of a water droplet was top-notch.

When Kris finally arrived at Mrs. Phillip's art class, she knocked on the door. The dark-haired woman looked up from her desk and smiled, getting up to open the door.

"Kris! Come in, honey, I was just grading some papers."

"Thanks!" The blonde stepped into the art room and breathed in the smell of fresh canvas board, paint, and old colored pencils.

The smell of an artist's abode, she mused, setting her lunch bag down.

Mrs. Phillips smoothed out her skirt before sitting down at her desk again. Her dark skin seemed to shine in the light of the room; she smiled at Kris.

"Come to work on yet another masterpiece?"

Kris returned the smile. "You bet! The acrylic paints are in the cabinet near the door, right?"

"Yes. You know where the canvas boards are, right?"

"I think so." The blonde strolled over to the paint cabinets and began to look through the assortment of paints.

When Kris finally had everything set up, she wet her brush, dabbed it onto her pallet, and began to let her creativity take flight.

"Oh, shoot!" Kris looked up to see Mrs. Phillips staring worriedly at a paper on her desk. She stood up.

"Kris, honey, I have to step out for a few minutes. Would you mind just watching the room for me until I get back?"

"Sure thing, Mrs. Phillips."

With that, her teacher left the room. Kris continued working on her painting, letting her mind blend in with the colors and brush strokes that were currently dotting her canvas.

Lindy may have been the popular one, but Kris was certainly the one with a pure heart. It was rare that she was treated kindly or even noticed at all, so she had learned to appreciate it when someone complimented her or even said something as miniscule as 'hello'.

She didn't like being the center of attention anyway; it was too much pressure to have to know what to say, what to do, how to react. So she tended to shift into Lindy's shadow, and that was fine with her.

Well... It was fine except for when Lindy decided to rub all her popularity in Kris's face.

The older of the Powell twins teased and ridiculed Kris mercilessly. While they had gotten along wonderfully during childhood, puberty seemed to pull their sisterly bond apart until all that was left was a thin thread. Lindy was thin and beautiful; Kris was slender and had a boyish figure. Lindy was popular and charming; Kris was quiet and an outcast. Lindy loved wearing makeup; Kris couldn't stand putting makeup on her face.

For twin sisters, they were quite different from each other.

"Uh, excuse me?"

Kris turned to see a tall boy with brown hair standing in the classroom doorway. He held up a piece of paper.

Something about him seemed familiar to Kris. The dark jeans, the white shirt, and red Converse... She couldn't remember where she had seen this boy, but she was feeling a major sense of deja vu.

"Can I help you?" she asked.

"Yeah, my name is, uh, Mark Wood? I'm new here."

Kris smiled and held out a hand. "I'm Kris Powell. Welcome to Oakwood High."

He flashed her a brilliant smile and gave her hand a firm shake. Kris's heart did a flip.

_Why does he seem so familiar?_

"Nice to meet you. I'm kind of lost and I was wondering if this was Mrs. Phillips' room?"

Kris nodded. "Yep! You're in the right place. She had to leave to take care of something, but she'll be back soon."

"Oh, okay," he said. Kris noticed he was trying to see over her shoulder. "Hey, are you painting?"

"Hm? Oh! Yeah, I am. Sorry." She gave a sheepish chuckle and stepped aside. Mark looked at the painting and his eyes seemed to light up.

"That's awesome," he said, glancing from her to the painting. "You've got serious talent."

Kris blushed, not used to such a compliment. "Thank you."

She noticed that Mark was staring at her intensely, as if memorizing every detail of her face.

"Uh... Mark?"

Something flashed in his eyes and he blinked.

"Hm?"

"You're kind of staring at me."

_Oh no, he's probably thinking I'm being rude_, Kris thought, scolding herself. _Stupid! Why did you have to be mean to him? What's wrong with you, Kris?!_

To her surprise, Mark laughed.

"Sorry," he laughed. "It's just that, well, you're kind of cute."

Kris blushed again. "R-really?"

He stood up and stepped closer to her. "Really."

The blonde girl stared into his eyes. There was just something so uncannily familiar about them...

"I feel like I know you from somewhere," she muttered. "But I can't think of where."

Mark smirked. The way his lips curved upward sent a shudder through Kris; she didn't like the mischievous gleam in his eyes.

"Maybe I just have that type of face," he suggested, and took a step closer to Kris.


	9. Chapter 9

**Many thanks to those who left reviews, faved, and followed! I hope you guys continue to enjoy this reboot of Years Later :D**

**To Rainlily216: Same! I especially liked the one scene where Amanda and Josh are surrounded by the dead children and Ray is kind of just chilling under a tree. Thank you so much for your review, and don't worry, I plan on updating this story weekly :) So thank you so much, again, for reviewing!**

**Sorry that this chapter is short.**

**I don't own Goosebumps.**

* * *

**Chapter 9**

Amy was just smoothing out her long black dress when there was a knock on the door.

"Amy, are you decent?"

"Yes, come in," she called.

Slappy entered the room and his eyes immediately locked onto her form. She felt extremely self-conscious as his intense green eyes slowly raked over her body. She held her breath as he silently took in every detail of her figure.

Finally, Slappy offered his arm to her. "Ready?"

Amy sighed. "Sure. Why not?"

Slappy opened his mouth but quickly closed it, thinking better of whatever he was going to say.

He escorted her down the stairs and into the hotel lobby. There were a bunch of odd-looking humans, humans wearing all-black clothing, and a few creatures of which Amy had never seen before. Judging by how tall and fat and strange the creatures looked, they did not belong among the well-known creatures that inhabited the earth. They were, to put it quite bluntly, freaks of nature.

Slappy led Amy outside and towards a large building with flashing lights. The black-haired girl couldn't help but clutch her captor's arm tighter.

Sure, Amy had been to a few night clubs, but she had always gone with her friends and people she trusted. She had no idea what this club would be like, as she didn't know anyone, nor did she even know where she was. She could be on some far off island for all she knew!

Slappy either didn't notice her hesitance to enter the building or he just didn't care because they continued walking towards it, entering it without even so much as flashing an ID card at the bouncer.

Much to Amy's surprise, the club was just like a normal club; there was a dance floor with flashing lights, pounding music, and fake mist created by mist machines.

Monsters and humans talked with each other casually, as if monsters were a daily occurrence in the world, while other spooky-looking things tended the bars and music system.

Slappy jerked Amy to the right and she nearly fell. She shot him a glare, which he ignored, but began to try to keep up with his fast pace.

Amy wanted to ask him why they were walking so quickly when he stopped at a door.

A tall monster stood guard. Slappy reached into his coat pocket and held up something like an ID card and the monster nodded, opening the door.

As they stepped through, Amy couldn't help but notice how strangely the monster was staring at her. She swallowed and clutched Slappy's arm a little tighter.

That look was something akin to how the boys at her school had looked at her.

She didn't like it one bit.

They stepped outside into what looked like a bistro. The pounding music faded when the door was closed behind them, and Slappy led them towards a table.

Amy and Slappy took a seat across from each other. As Slappy waved a waiter over, flashing her a brilliant smile before ordering a cocktail for both of them, Amy couldn't help but wonder just what the hell was going on.


	10. Chapter 10

**Thank you for your reviews! :) Especially you, SideshowJazz1! You always leave such lovely reviews! :D And thank you, midnight, and ROC95! :)**

**Hope you guys enjoy! I'm sorry that it's so short, but, well, my story is going to be a whole mix of short and long chapters.**

**I don't own Goosebumps.**

* * *

**Chapter 10**

Kris took a tentative step back. Mark was making her uncomfortable, what with the way he was staring at her. She knew that look very well; it was the same exact look that all the boys in school gave Lindy.

She didn't like it at all.

"Ah... Mark?"

He smiled. "Yeah?"

"Do you, um... Do you think you could move back a little?"

"Why?"

"Well... For one thing, you're standing in front of the paint bottles and I need to refill my palette."

Mark blushed, then stepped aside. Kris reached over and grabbed the yellow bottle of paint. She squeezed a few fat drops onto one of the dips in her palette, then mixed it with the remaining red. A bloody orange color emerged, and Kris resumed painting.

She could feel Mark's gaze boring into her back as she worked, and she kept shifting this way and that to stop herself from screaming, "Dude, why are you _staring_ at me?"

The bell rang, shaking both teens from their trances. Kris sighed and began to clean her mess up. She had just put back all the paints when Mark picked up her painting.

"Wait!" she cried. "The paint is still wet!"

"I'm not touching the paint," he replied, his gaze fixed on her work. "I'm holding it by the edges."

Kris bit her lip. _So help him if he screws up even a microfiber of my painting!_

Finally, Mark brought it over to the paint rack and delicately placed it down so that it could dry.

He grabbed his stuff and headed for the door. Before he placed his hand over the cool knob, he turned back to Kris.

"You're a very talented artist. I'll be sure to keep that in mind when I talk to the interior designer."

Kris stared after him, dumbfounded.

_What the heck is he talking about?_

Finally, after a shake of the head, she grabbed her things and left for Chemistry.

All through class, though, she couldn't help but ponder about her strange acquaintance. Could she even call him her acquaintance? Mark didn't seem like a stranger, yet he was so friendly and kind to her. Were they friends?

_Maybe we're friends and maybe we're not_, she thought. _He's kind of weird. I'll have to be careful around him; people these days just can't be trusted._


	11. Chapter 11

**Hey, all! Thanks SakuraDreamerz for your reviews :D**

**I don't own Goosebumps.**

* * *

**Chapter 11**

Amanda squirmed her way out of Ray's arms and fell down into the snow. Coldness stabbed at her body from all angles and she cried out, clutching and hugging herself in an attempt to hold onto any warmth she had.

Ray clucked his tongue and scooped her up again. He held her shivering body close to his own, and surprisingly, he was a little warm.

"I was only carrying you, Amanda. It's not like I was groping you."

A frustrated noise escaped the brunette girl and she tried getting out of his grip again.

This time, however, Ray held her closer and tighter.

"Let me go!"

"I told you not to underestimate me," he replied, amusement lacing his voice. "But you ignored me. You're stubborn, you know that?"

"Ray, I'm not kidding! Let me go, now!"

"Hmm, let me think... Nope." He smiled.

Amanda huffed. "Then can you please let me down?"

"Yeah, about that, I don't know if you've noticed, but you're completely barefoot, and if you walk around barefoot in less than twenty degrees, I'm pretty sure you'll get frost bite. I don't think you want that."

Amanda ignored him and looked around. She didn't recognize the buildings around her, nor did she recognize the road that she and Ray were on.

"Where are we?"

"Dark Falls."

Amanda's eyes locked onto his. "W-what?"

Ray nodded, his gentle blue eyes full of mirth. "I got you hours ago. It was pretty easy to carry you all the way here."

"B-but the other residents, they'll k-kill me!"

Ray carried her up to Dead House and opened the door. He brought them both into the living room and set Amanda down in front of the fireplace, which, thankfully, held a roaring fire. Amanda shivered, temporarily ignoring the fact that she was in the same room as the boy who just kidnapped her, and moved closer to the fire. Heat caressed her face; she let out a content sigh.

"The other residents aren't going to kill you," he said, appearing with a big, fluffy blanket. He wrapped it around Amanda's shoulders; she mumbled a 'thank-you'.

"They're going to be getting a new family to feed on soon," he continued, taking a seat next to her. "And they were already told that if they so much as look at you the wrong way, they'll have me to deal with."

The brunette snuck a glance at Ray to see his eyes red instead of blue. She quickly returned her gaze to the dancing flames in front of her.

Ray wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her close. Amanda ended up losing her balance and fell into his side.

Ray chuckled but didn't comment. A furious blush crept across Amanda's cheeks.

Eventually, the remaining cold and the overall exhaustion from the week got to the girl and she began to fall asleep. She felt Ray pick her up and bring her upstairs, but kept her eyes closed.

She didn't even flinch when Ray placed her on a cool, soft surface and wrapped heavy blankets around her body.

"Good night," he whispered.

* * *

"Oh my God!" Amanda hissed, consciousness hitting her full-force.

She sat up quickly and began looking around. This room wasn't her bedroom; the room was aged and smelled like old wood. She looked down to find herself laying on a bed complete with fresh white sheets and a black comforter.

_What the hell?_

She swung her legs around the edge of the bed and stood up. Amanda had to lean against the wall for a second before she was able to stand on her own. She walked over to the window and was shocked by what she saw.

Unsurprisingly, the weather was dark. The clouds covered the sun, masking Dark Falls from its sunny view, and light rain was sprinkling the town. Save for one or two people walking around, the entire town seemed dead.

Amanda gave a wry smile.

_The entire town_ is_ dead._

She jumped when the door behind her opened. Ray stepped in holding a bagel and a water bottle.

"Hey, you're finally up," he chirped. "I was worried."

"Worried? You think _you're_ worried?" Amanda jabbed a finger in his chest. "_You're_ not the one who was kidnapped!"

He smirked. "_You're_ the one who challenged me. All I did was prove that I could find you and bring you back here."

Amanda opened her mouth to protest, then realized that Ray was right. She did challenge him. She only had herself to blame.

Ray shoved the bagel towards her.

"You need to eat."

"How long have I been asleep?" Amanda asked. She accepted the bagel, but didn't make a move to eat it.

"I'd say five hours."

Amanda paled. "Five hours?"

"You woke up somewhere around three in the morning, when I just arrived in Dark Falls," Ray explained. "It's somewhere around eight o'clock, now, so I'd say roughly five hours. I was worried, though, because it's freezing outside. I didn't want you to get sick or get frost bite or something like that."

Amanda sat down on the bed. She wrapped her arms around herself.

"Are you feeling okay?" Ray sat beside her. He wanted to reach over and touch her, but figured she wanted her space.

"Yeah... I'm great," she mumbled. "I'm how-many-miles from home and I'm sitting with the very boy who wanted to kill me."

Ray sighed. "You know, for what it's worth, I do like you."

"So you kidnap me."

"Love isn't perfect."

He smiled when she laughed softly.

"Look, I'm not going to make you do anything you don't want to do. If you want me to sleep on the couch, fine, if you want me to leave you alone for a while, fine. But please, just... Stay?"

Amanda turned to him. She searched his face for any hint that he might be lying, that he'd sneak into bed with her and try something while she was sleeping, but found a solemn expression.

_He looks so sad,_ she thought. There seemed to be a deep sadness lurking in his bright blue eyes.

Amanda sighed. "All right, I'll stay. But if you touch me while I'm sleeping or you do something perverted, I swear -"

Ray relaxed. "I promise, I won't do anything you don't want me to."

He pulled the girl into a hug. Amanda stiffened, then relaxed.

"You have no idea how much his means to me," he whispered.

She shivered in reply.


	12. Chapter 12

**To Nora: glad I could make your day a little brighter :D**

**To Fuego de Estrella/Nora: thanks for the follow! That's my fave chapter, too :)**

**Thank you for all of your reviews! :)**

**If this chapter sucks... meh, I did my best.**

**I don't own Goosebumps.**

* * *

**Chapter 12**

Hours later, Ray left Amanda alone. He said something about running errands, kissed her on the cheek, and locked the house up. Amanda would have rejoiced at the fact that she had the house to herself, aka a way to get out of this damned place, if not for her babysitter, Karen.

Karen hadn't changed at all since Amanda had last seen her. She still had long blond braids that fell to the middle of her back, and she still wore an old, ratty straw sunhat. Her expression betrayed no emotions; she sat on the old dusty couch and stared into the fire that was currently dancing in the fireplace.

Amanda was free to move about the house as she wished, but she was not allowed outside. Karen may have looked to be in some sort of catatonic state, but she snapped to attention if she thought Amanda was doing anything suspicious.

So Amanda sat near the fire with a blanket wrapped around her shoulders. The hardwood floors were cold underneath her bare feet, but the fire was definitely helping to warm her.

Outside, snow fell in thick flakes and wind howled against the old house. The old floors and walls creaked and groaned in protest.

Amanda couldn't understand Ray's fascination with her. What was so interesting about her? She was average-looking, had average grades, and she had a boring personality. What about the other kids? There had been other families before her family that hadn't been so lucky, and there were probably some other families who had gotten away. Surely some of those families had pretty girls with brave hearts that Ray could go after?

Amanda shivered and pulled the blanket tighter around herself.

_Of course Ray would choose me out of any girls_, she thought. _It's just my luck that he'd choose plain old Amanda, the girl who got away and was trying to make a life for herself. That's my luck, all right._

"How old are you?"

Amanda looked up from the fire to meet Karen's gaze.

"Huh?"

"When you and your family first came here, you were twelve," Karen explained, her piercing gaze locked on the brunette girl. "How old are you now?"

Amanda looked away for a second, still uncomfortable under the undead girl's gaze.

"I'm sixteen," she replied.

Karen offered a sad smile. "I wish I could be sixteen right now."

Amanda shrugged. "It's not all that fun. It's just another year."

"When you're sixteen, it's not just another year," Karen replied. "You're able to get your driver's license, right?"

"Yes."

"Well, I don't know about you, but I wish I could be alive, be sixteen, and go out and drive around. I think that would be the most wonderful thing. I've heard that driving is a little like flying; it's a form of freedom."

Amanda wasn't sure what to say. She only recently had gotten her permit and with the excessive snowfall, her parents hadn't allowed her to drive yet. She couldn't tell Karen whether driving really was like flying or if it was just another plain, everyday experience.

For a moment, the two girls sat in silence. Karen still had a sad smile on her face while Amanda just looked tiredly into the fireplace.

Finally, the girl got up, readjusting the blanket around her shoulders.

"I'm going to make some hot chocolate. Do you want me to make you some?"

Karen stood. "No, but I can make it for you."

"No, that's okay, I've already gotten -"

But Karen had already disappeared into the kitchen, and the sound of a stove turning on made Amanda heave a sigh.

"-up."

She sat back down. Then, slowly, her eyes wandered to the front door.

_It could be so easy_, a part of her brain whispered. _Karen is busy in the kitchen; there's no way she'd be able to watch you while she's in there. _

_You can just walk out the front door, catch a bus, and get back home._

_But I promised Ray that I would stay with him_, she argued._ As much as I want to go home, he's been pretty nice to me. I think even if I don't return his feelings, I should at least give him a chance as a friend._

_The one chance you have to leave this place and you're blanching at the idea?_

Amanda bit her lip.

Slowly, she made her way to the front door. She placed a hand on the doorknob then, with a glance behind to make sure Karen wasn't looking, turned it softly.

It stopped mid-turn. Amanda messed with the lock until it clicked open.

The door opened with a satisfying 'click' and Amanda maneuvered herself through the thin opening she gave herself.

Stepping out into the snow barefoot and without winter clothing was definitely NOT one of her best ideas. The howling wind beat at her to get back in the house and her body screamed at her to get back inside the warm house, but she ignored both and kept walking, down the porch steps and into the main lane.

Just as she had made it a good distance from the house, she noticed a certain blonde boy making his way back to the house. Amanda tried to turn and sprint away from him, but she was out of luck.

Ray saw her.

She hurried down the streets, turning this way and that, each step hurting and chilling her body more. It didn't take long before she lost feeling in her face and her ears; her hands and feet weren't faring any better.

Ray was faster. Within ten minutes, he had caught up to her.

"Amanda!"

The brown-haired girl refused to listen. She pumped her legs faster.

_Come on! Move faster!_

"Amanda, stop!"

_Please, please! Just a little faster!_

Ray quickened his pace and got close to her before pouncing. He tackled her into a snow bank. Amanda cried out as her entire body came into contact with the cold snow.

She struggled underneath Ray, who was surprisingly heavy for a dead boy, and tried to scream. He covered her mouth.

"So much for telling me that you'll stay, huh?"

Guilt stabbed her insides. Or maybe it was the cold wet snow seeping through her clothes that was stabbing at her and making her feel bad; Amanda couldn't tell.

All she could think about was how stupid she was for trying to make a run for it. What had she been thinking, bolting from the house while Karen was in the kitchen?

_Of course_ Ray had been coming back when she'd decided to make a run for it.

_Of course_ he'd be faster and be able to tackle her to the ground.

_Well,_ this _is just great_, Amanda thought bitterly.

"I had a feeling you'd pull something like this," Ray said, speaking a little loudly so she could hear him over the howling wind. He uncovered her mouth and pulled her to her feet. Amanda stumbled and nearly fell, but he steadied her.

Wordlessly, he picked the shivering girl up and brought her back to the house. Karen was standing on the porch, blank expression still present.

"I'm sorry," she stated, as soon as both teens were within earshot. "I was in the kitchen when she took off. I thought she could be trusted for five minutes."

Ray nodded. "Don't worry about it. I expected this to happen. Thanks for looking after her while I was gone."

With that, Karen left. Ray brought Amanda into the house and upstairs in the bathroom.

He drew her a very hot bath and set out towels, a pair of dry sweatpants, and a sweatshirt that looked three sizes too big for her. Amanda looked up at him, hugging herself, teeth chattering. Her lips were blue.

She immediately regretted lifting her gaze. Ray, who normally seemed calm and collected, wore a scowl. She had never seen him look this annoyed; it made her feel even worse for running off.

"Because you decided to run around in the snow barefoot," Ray said, his tone sharp. "You're gonna have to soak in the hot water for a while to get your blood circulating again. When you're feeling better, change and come out. I'll be by the door just in case you decide to have any more bright ideas."

With that, he exited the bathroom and closed the door behind himself. Amanda heard him sit down against the door and sigh. Fighting off violent shivers, she carefully stripped and settled in the tub. The hot water stung her cold skin, then thoroughly warmed her.

She let out a content sigh. For a while, it would be nice to soak in the soothing hot water, but Amanda knew that sooner or later she'd have to face Ray and she'd have to face the growing guilt of knowing she betrayed his trust.


	13. Chapter 13

**Here's another chapter! Enjoy~**

**To Rainlily216: thank you! :D**

**I don't own Goosebumps.**

* * *

**Chapter 13**

"...So, like, I told him to back off because I'm already taken, and besides, why would I ever date him? You know what I mean? I'm just way out of his league."

Kris rolled her eyes at her sister's phone conversation. She set her backpack on her bed and began to rummage through it, pulling out some colored pencils she'd borrowed from the art room and her beloved sketchbook. Lindy was laying on her own bed, feet waving lazily in the air, cell phone pressed between her shoulder and her ear while she checked her fingernails.

As she listened to her sister's conversation, she realized she'd need her iPod to help drown out every word.

"Oh, yeah, totally. Yeah, I'm thinking of breaking up with him anyway; things are just boring now."

Kris wrinkled her nose.

_On second thought_, she thought. _Maybe I'd better just go draw in the kitchen._

She grabbed her art supplies and headed downstairs to the kitchen. Mrs. Powell was out at the supermarket and Mr. Powell was working, so the twins had the house to themselves this afternoon. The house was quiet, save for Lindy's obnoxious chatter upstairs, and Kris was grateful that the kitchen was nice and silent.

As she began to draw across the page, she let her mind wander to all the things that had happened today.

Getting yelled at for being late by her first period teacher, hearing all of Lindy's friends whisper and snicker about her, and then meeting Mark.

She paused mid-scribble at the thought of the new boy.

_Why did he look so familiar? And why was he acting so weird? Maybe he was just having a bad first day._

She switched out her Ticonderoga for a red colored pencil and continued working.

_It was so weird... What was that comment about? 'Interior designer'? Does this kid think that just because we were talking, I'm going to live with him?_

_Maybe I'm just overthinking things_, Kris reasoned with herself. _Maybe he was put up to all this by Lindy's friends. Maybe I'm just paying too much attention to this kid._

Satisfied with her thoughts, Kris continued drawing and let her thoughts blend into a mix of ideas for her current piece of work.

* * *

The next day, Kris entered the school expecting Lindy's friends and Mark to mess with her. She was pretty sure Mark was with Lindy's friends and that he had just been messing with her yesterday. They were probably going to call her a crappy artist and make fun of the fact that she spent her lunch periods in the art wing.

She gripped the strap of her backpack tightly as one by one, Lindy's friends caught sight of her.

"Ew, look! It's the freak," one of Lindy's friends whined, scrunching her nose in disgust. The other kids laughed and shot her mean, mocking looks.

"As ugly as ever," another girl agreed.

"And as stupid as ever," a boy chimed in. They all laughed.

Kris bit her lip.

_Okay, nothing out of the ordinary; are they going to attack my artwork next?_

But to her surprise, they all returned their attention to whatever it was they were doing before she showed up. Kris heaved a sigh of relief.

She went to her locker and had just finished switching out her books when someone tapped on her locker door. Startled, she moved it to the side.

Mark grinned at her. "G'morning."

"Ah... Good morning?"

"Would you like me to help you carry those?" He nodded towards the stack of books in her arms. Kris shook her head.

"No, I can -"

"Nonsense, let me help."

Mark snatched a few books from her pile and shot her a charming smile. Kris gaped.

"H-hey!"

"You're welcome. Where's your first class?"

Kris opened her mouth to protest, but ended up sighing in defeat.

"Math wing. Do you know where that is?"

"Yes."

Kris followed him down a few hallways before coming to a pair of double doors.

Mark pushed them open and motioned for Kris to go first. She obliged, not able to see over her massive amount of books.

_What the...? We're outside!_

The cold winter air bit through her clothes; she shivered violently.

"M-Mark! What are we doing out h-here?"

"Don't worry, Kris, everything will be just fine as soon as we leave this hellhole."

She turned to question him when something blunt hit the back of her head. Her books fell down the concrete stairs with resounding thuds and she sank to her knees. Kris reached up and clutched her aching head.

"Ow! What was that for?"

Something hit her again and this time, she fully collapsed.

Right before Kris hit the concrete, she saw her bag land beside her.

The last thing she saw was her beloved box of colored pencils falling down the stairs, some of them breaking.


	14. Chapter 14

**Long chapter for a change. If there are mistakes, then I'll fix 'em later. Too tired.**

**I don't own Goosebumps.**

* * *

**Chapter 14**

"You look beautiful tonight."

Amy looked up from her salad. Slappy's emerald eyes were trained on her, watching her every movement. She blushed slightly and looked down at her plate.

"So... Why did you take me out to eat?" she asked softly. Slappy took a sip of his wine.

"To discuss the terms of your enslavement."

Amy's head snapped up. She narrowed her eyes at the auburn-haired young man.

Slamming her fork on the table next to her untouched salad, she spit out, "I'm not your slave."

"We'll see about that, Amy," he replied, a sly smile on his face. "How about we discuss the terms anyway?"

"How about 'no', and how about you take me home and find some other girl to enslave?"

"You've got quite a mouth on you," Slappy remarked. "That will be one of the first things we'll have to change."

At that, Amy jumped to her feet. "I'm _not_ your slave and I don't _want_ to be! What don't you get?"

Something predatory flickered in the former dummy's eyes. "Sit down, Amy."

"No!"

"Amy."

She slammed her fist down onto the table. "No, this is ridiculous! You kidnap me, you're telling me to marry you, you freaking _kiss_ me, and despite all this, you're still calling me your freaking slave. What the hell is wrong with you? Why -"

"That's _enough_, Amy."

The hardness of his voice sent a chill down Amy's spine. Reluctantly, she took her seat.

"Technically, I did not kidnap you," he said. "You've been mine from the start. I simply collected you once I was able to turn myself human."

Amy opened her mouth to protest, but he held up a hand. Begrudgingly, she let him continue.

"I call you my slave because that is what you are. A human girl, a maid, a personal slave of mine. I give you food, shelter, and a warm bed to sleep in, all in exchange for you keeping the place clean and doing what I ask of you. Considering how other people might treat you in this type of relationship, you should count yourself lucky that I'm not forcing you to do anything you don't want to do."

"Yeah, well, I don't want to marry you," she grumbled. Slappy nodded.

"That's the deal. You marry me, I keep a roof over your head. Simple enough, yes?"

"But I don't _want_ to be in this type of relationship with you," Amy protested. "I just want to go home, and I want to live a normal life without living dummies who cause mischief."

"Well, it looks to me like you're out of luck. You're mine, you're marrying me, and that's the end of it."

"Not if I get away from you," she seethed. She was clenching her fists so hard her nails were beginning to dig crescents into her palm.

Slappy sipped his wine. "I'd love to see you try."

"There's nothing stopping me."

"No, there's not," he agreed. "You can do whatever you wish. I'm sure you'll be fine walking all throughout Horrorland without me by your side, protecting you from all those monsters and psychopaths out there. I'm sure they'll leave a beautiful, defenseless girl such as yourself all alone and won't try to rape her or hurt her. You're right, Amy; go right ahead."

Amy nodded. "I'll be fine."

With that, she stood up and walked away from the table. She entered the club building and weaved her way through the crowds, constantly bumping into people and mumbling half-hearted 'excuse me's.

She'd just gotten near the bar area when someone tapped her on the shoulder. Half-expecting it to be Slappy, Amy whirled on her heel and glared.

"What do you- Oh!"

It was a tall human boy, and judging by his dark clothing, he was into gothic styles. His messy black hair hung in front of his eyes, making his pale skin look even paler in the dim lighting. His lips turned up into a friendly smile. Amy eyed him curiously.

"I'm sorry, I thought you were someone else," she shouted, hoping he could hear her over the pounding music.

"No problem," he replied. He gestured to the crowd.

"Wanna dance?"

Amy glanced at the massive crowd of people, all dancing and moving with the pounding rhythm that reverberated all throughout the building.

She could feel the beat vibrating throughout her body, taking control of her heartbeat and forcing it to pound in time with the bass.

She was definitely not in the mood for dancing, not after arguing with Slappy.

Amy shook her head and mouthed a 'no thanks', then continued to move through the crowd. When she was finally able to get outside into the cool night air, she realized she was sweating. The cold winter air rushed at her and chilled her to the bone. The heat from the club that clung to her skin was gone, replaced by a bitter chill. A violent shiver overtook her before she forced herself to walk, though to where, she did not know.

_I should've brought a jacket_, she thought, wrapping her arms around herself in an attempt to secure some warmth. As she walked down the streets of Horrorland, she noticed monsters and humans alike staring at her. Though their stares made her very uncomfortable, she pressed on, determined to get away from a certain dummy and prove him wrong.

Amy rounded a corner and continued her brisk pace. She hardly noticed that two men had fallen into step behind her.

She had been walking past a dark alleyway when suddenly, she was shoved to the ground.

"What a pretty little thing you are," one of them crooned in her ear. Amy tried to get up, but a boot-clad foot kept her down.

"It's not often we see such pretty girls around here," the other whispered. "Where're you from, sweetheart?"

"Please don't hurt me," Amy managed to get out. She was terrified. "I don't want any trouble."

"Hear that? She doesn't want any trouble. Don't you worry, baby, we're not here to cause trouble."

The boot was removed from her back and she was able to bring herself to her knees. Snow clung to her skin and hair; she was shivering.

"We're just here for some fun, see?"

A face loomed before her. It was the same boy that had asked her to dance in the club. He was grinning, showing off elongated fangs that were glistening with saliva.

"Y-you're a -"

"Vampire, darling, yes. You don't mind me taking a little sip of you, do you? No, of course you don't."

Before she could even process it, Amy was pinned against a brick wall, her hair swept away from her neck. Both boys were leaning in, breathing in her scent.

"She's O negative," one of them whispered. "We hit the jackpot, man."

"Cheers."

"No, p-please!"

Both boys opened their mouths wide and were about to sink their fangs into her neck when one was yanked off of her roughly. Amy squirmed and thrashed against the remaining vampire pinning her, but it did nothing.

The sounds of curses, grunts, and a scuffle filled Amy's ears, and she was just about to call out to whoever had yanked the vampire off of her when two tiny needles sank into her neck. She screamed, desperate to get out of the vampire's grasp. It seemed the more she fought, the deeper his fangs dug into her skin. She could feel him pulling blood from her body, and it was like someone had lit fire to her veins.

Finally, though, when Amy was starting to feel faint and she had stopped fighting, the vampire was yanked off of her. Amy slumped to the ground, her head lolling forward. Her dark hair fell around her face like a curtain.

A few grunts and the sound of punches ensued, and just when Amy was on the brink of unconsciousness, a warm hand tilted her chin up. She blinked a few times to get her vision to work properly, and she realized she was staring into predatory green eyes.

Slappy.

"Well, that was interesting, wasn't it? Good thing I followed you or you might not be alive right now."

Her tongue felt heavy. The cold suddenly felt warm; black dots began to cloud her vision.

Slappy sighed. "Don't think you're not in trouble. We'll talk about this later, but for now, we need to get you back to the hotel."

He took off his jacket and wrapped it around her freezing form. He carefully picked her up bridal-style.

That's when Amy's eyes closed and she blacked out.


End file.
